The Simpsons (TV Series) Bart-Mangled Banner (2004) User Reviews

A Much Misunderstood Episode... Apparently

[corinwright · 7/10 · 1 November 2017]

This is The Simpsons doing political satire, and the extent to which some people have seemingly completely missed the points a is astounding and also somewhat ironic given the content of some of the reviews for this episode.

The message of this episode makes a lot more sense if you give it some context by considering the time when it was first aired and what was going on during that period (the early 00's).

People frothing with rage insisting this episode is "pro-american" and "disgraceful" really need to chill and re-watch the episode, perhaps trying to apply some perspective, patience and reason upon their second watching.

Overall 7/10. It's an OK episode, but I like it when writers try to do things like this, even if they could have pulled it off slightly better.

An unfunny and ridiculously pro-American episode (spoilers)

[Anasasis · 1/10 · 10 December 2007]

This is my least favourite episode of all of them. I LOVE this show and its good episodes are the best I've ever seen. However this doesn't even deserve to be shown. First of all it has a badly executed parody of North by Nortwest involving Dr Hibbert trying to inoculate Bart. They manage to have the way he finally gets him kinda funny however spoil it with an unfunny line from Moe. Next we see Bart having his pants bitten off by a donkey and for some strange reason which we will never know he doesn't think to run out of view, even though he is deaf. Everyone in America instantly shuns the whole Simpson family and they're sent to a prison. They manage to distract the guards by doing a pro-American song which is also unfunny, then just to top off the absolute ridiculousness of this episode. They flee to France and despite the fact that they love everything about France, for almost no reason they miss America. They decide to move back and as the episode ends the viewer sits in dismay at the horrible jokes and feels offended at the Simpsons disregard for other countries.

Excellent and Much Misunderstood episode.

[jeremy-surtees · 8/10 · 26 January 2014]

It appears that many people have missed the point of this episode. I have seen it described as ridiculously pro-American and and at times nonsensical. To say this is to completely misunderstand what this episode is about; it is a commentary on the political situation in America at the time of this episode's broadcasting. In the years following 9/11, there was, understandably, a climate of fear in the United States. This episode tackles two manifestations of this climate of fear: an increasingly hysterical media encouraging ridiculous levels of patriotism bordering on the insane (look up "freedom fries," and you'll see what I'm talking about), and the riding roughshod over civil liberties that the Bush administration did in this time period (see patriot act). You can also see a sense of longing in this episode for a return of the America that once was; an America without the paranoia and engendering of fear by the authorities, without the uncompromising polarisation of politics, which still plagues the United States today. It is also a beautiful irony that this was broadcast on the very same network whose news channel was responsible for much of the hysteria that this episode lampoons.

It is a excellent piece of political satire, that the Simpsons so often does so well. Anyone remotely politically minded will love this episode.

Oh dear

[studioAT · 1/10 · 16 February 2020]

Unfortunately the show dips its toe into political satire, and gets it wrong.

A skippable episode.

A Very Adventurous and Different Episode,

[lesleyharris30 · 9/10 · 21 July 2015]

Bart-Mangled Banner is a fantastic Simpsons episode with a very well written storyline and loads of very funny scenes. It's certainly one of the highlights of the fifteenth season, I always forget about this episode but when I see it on I remember how much I love it, it's very risky, making several jabs at America, and the overall set up seemed like a disaster waiting to happen, but it ended being a truly great and unique episode. It had great potential at the end of the episode to have a second part, which I think would have been great and felt like a missed opportunity, it's a substantial episode so it would have made perfect sense to be a two parter, I would have loved to see the Simpsons getting use to a new life in New York, eventually moving back to their home town in Springfield of course, this was a great opportunity for another episode and the writers should do something like that more often, twenty more minutes to wrap up the story properly. It's very impressive how much is done in this episode, I find it very hard to believe that it's only twenty minutes long, the story takes many twists and turns, and the characters are taken to many different locations, this couldn't have been easy for the animators and the director deserves huge credit for the amount of work that went in to it. There isn't any other episode like it, Bart- Managled Banner is a very enjoyable Simpsons episode.

The Simpsons become the most hated family in America after a picture of Bart mooning the American flag goes viral.

A hateful episode that deserves nothing but to be forgotten.

[Theraxorterminate · 1/10 · 5 January 2014]

First of all I don't mind watching the episodes that are outside the classic episodes there are some good and decent ones. However this episode is definitely a disgrace especially to our favorite family getting a really bad turn with absolutely no support.

The beginning of the episode seemed promising and was actually quite funny to see the way of Hibbert trying to catch Bart for the injection he needed. But it didn't seem like the injection gave Bart a good way which only made him deaf and then suddenly this episode takes a bad turn when Bart (technically wasn't even going to) moonshines at the American flag while even though the teachers should've been aware that Bart was deaf after the injection he got from Hibbert. And the episode does not become anything better it shows a lot of disrespect to the Simpsons and while they had a chance of support they squandered it. And then they are sent to jail and while they want to escape and exceeds they somehow arrive in France and loves it, but wait suddenly Marge tells that even though she likes France with no reason she wants to go back to USA. Did she forgot that they still hate them and what if they can not come back to their house?

Yet at the next episode they totally ignore and forget that all this has happened and without any further good messages or how they managed to not get hated anymore!

Sorry this episode didn't work well, it's not well written at all and shows nothing good to learn what you should do if something like this could happen.

Is it recommended? No, this episode was worthless and I wouldn't recommend to any Simpsons fans at all to see this badly made episode.

One of the worst Simpsons episodes..

[Filvies144 · 1/10 · 4 December 2014]

I love The Simpsons, but this is one episode I strongly dislike and here's why. When Bart accidentally moons the flag, wouldn't he be punished instead of the whole family. I don't like how the whole family get's blamed even though they didn't do anything. Another really dumb thing about this episode is that the news of Bart mooning the flag accidentally goes nationwide. That's completely unrealistic because Springfield is one of many towns in the US. The Simpson's even even go to JAIL! ALL OF THEM! It is very mean spirited and this sorry excuse of a Simpsons episode should've never been made. The start of the episode was good, but then it got awful. That's all

1/10

Overhated

[tommystans · 8/10 · 16 September 2023]

I think some people had forgotten the point this episode was trying to make which is saying you can love your country and express criticism about it clearly instead of blindsightly loving it. I don't know why some people thought the Simpson family was hated for no reason when it was there clear as day with Bart, accidently, mooning the flag. At the time the episode aired, it was post-9/11 and patriortism was everywhere to showcase that they are not afraid. But dare you express disdain about your country's ideals then you're un-American, the Dixie Chicks in London is a good example of that.....

If you think hate crimes are funny you'll like this episode. If you have any human decency you won't.

[zacpetch · 1/10 · 30 July 2015]

This episode is the only Simpsons episode to produce actual genuine vomit in my throat. It's ridiculously pro-American beyond the point of satire. It's far far too political to even remember to so much as try to be funny. And to make it worse (which you wouldn't even think possible) there's also an annoyingly catchy musical number in there.

The episode is filled with hate. It is the story of a whole nation rising up against a small innocent family of five for no particular reason, even Maggie is targeted and she can't even walk or talk yet! This is all because Bart moons the US flag – by accident! – which is apparently an insult worthy of… going to Alcatraz?! The Simpsons respond by escaping via an extremely pro-American musical and swimming to safety, then they get a lift to France and start a new life in Paris. The episode ends with the family getting back to the USA by becoming illegal immigrants; seriously?! After everything they've gone through they want to go back?!?!?!

If you think hate crimes are funny you'll like this episode. If you have any human decency you won't.

A time capsule of post-911 hysteria

[brandomcgregor · 10/10 · 17 January 2023]

Just watched this episode for the first time on Disney Plus. I wish I had seen it when it was originally on. It captures the post-911 hysteria perfectly. A lot of people think Trump was the lowest point in US history, but during the Trump era, there was plenty of dissent on TV and in the media. Post 911, people were freaskishly right wing and patriotic. This was when Tucker Carlson had a show on MSNBC and Lou Dobbs and Glenn Beck had shows on CNN and Headline News. It was a freaskishly dystopian period in US history and the episode captures this perfectly. It's funny conservatives love to talk about cancel culture but this was when people were actively censored for speaking out against the Bush administraiton. From the Dixie Chicks to Bill Maher. It's a high point in an otherwise mediocre season.

That's disgusting

[arielsiere · 2/10 · 4 September 2022]

Another Simpson torture episode just like Kill The Alligator And Run and At Long Last Leave, Dr Hibbert is very unlikable, it even contains the infamous scene where Bart gets pushed by Dolph, Jimbo and Kearney those three school bullies, this episode also shows hipocrisy and it has a bad ending when the entire Simpsons family goes to jail, this is also another torture episode towards Bart Simpson just like The Boys Of Bummer and the scene when Bart moons the flag is so disgusting and cringeworthy, wait a minute it was donkey who ate Bart's pants when it had a carrott on his pocket making this episode very offensive towards people who live in the Usa and thank god it's on the terrible shows and episodes wiki from miraheze.